


While You Were Sleeping

by erikahk



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-11
Updated: 2014-01-11
Packaged: 2018-01-08 08:38:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1130546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erikahk/pseuds/erikahk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rodney survives an earthquake and a blizzard and ends up having to care for an injured Sheppard.</p>
            </blockquote>





	While You Were Sleeping

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Earth, fire, water and air

Wind whipped his face, leaving it numb as he crossed the icy plain. Rain, thin and fierce, tried to slice his skin. Rodney bent low and raised his hand over his head, his eyes open to slits but still watering and stinging as he tried to find the path he was supposed to follow. 

There was nothing. No trace of the footprints he had been chasing. 

A brief flash of lightning let him see how far the flat plain was ahead of him, all of it blanketed by snow. He lifted one foot after another, forcing near frozen legs to keep going, looking ahead, always ahead and never back. 

His arm still ached, the pain going as deep as his cold bones, and tears stung his eyes whenever he moved it. But he had to keep going. He couldn't stop. Stopping meant giving up and Rodney couldn't, wouldn't, surrender to a stupid weather phenomenon while people needed him. 

All trapped. All trapped and he was the only one who could get help. Of anyone, of all the possibilities the universe had, it was him, Rodney McKay, these people's best chance of survival. If they had needed him to fix something, a piece of technology, a heating system, a shield, cloak, power supply, anything, he would have jumped at the challenge no matter how slim the chances of success would be, but not this. He might be Canadian, but he wasn't built for crossing cold blizzards on Hoth-like planets in a galaxy far, far away. 

It had been stupid of them to trust him with this task, but there had been no one else. Just a bunch of crying children and scared mothers. To think that he had been begging to get the hell out of that cave, to get away from all those tears and sobbing, to have a moment of peace from the despair and the mourning he was not even part of. 

He rubbed his arm across his chest and raised his head slightly. Still dark. Still too far to see anything. How could he reach the gate if he had no idea where it was? Just across the plain. Just across the huge plain of hell. 

He looked back and didn't see anything but gray nothingness and a blur of snow coming almost horizontally. Not even his footsteps. If he got lost, no one would ever find him. He would die, forgotten on this icy rock of a planet, without anyone knowing it had been to save a hundred people. Without anyone knowing he had _failed_ to save those one hundred people. 

Another step ahead made him trip. He stumbled and fell, rolling down a steep decline, seeming like it would go forever. He swallowed ice and snow and puffed them out of his nostrils until he hit solid ground with a thump. He moaned low, blinking the tears away and cradling his swollen arm close to his chest.

He rolled over, his back on the frozen ground, and looked up at the dark sky, watching the white flecks swirl around while the wind moaned. 

He could just stay there and wait for death to claim him, crying over a broken arm while his body froze, or he could get to his feet. He supported all of his weight on one side and placed his good hand down to push himself up. He groaned as his stiff body moved, but he managed to sit and moan a sigh of triumph just before he heard a crack beneath him. 

He froze immediately and looked around, noticing the hairline fracture growing to a spider web right under his body. Before his brain could suggest a proper course of action, he felt his weight shift heavily to one side and only a fraction of a second later, he was falling.

He cried out and flapped his arms around, trying to grab onto something, anything, but managing only to grasp chunks of breaking ice that crumpled under his touch and made him collapse into the dark oblivion below while his howl was muted by the snowstorm outside. 

He hit the bottom as hard as he had hit the ceiling, air vanishing from his lungs and a million blinking stars exploded behind his eyes when his arm slammed into rock. Waves of agony roared through his whole body, and it took an eternity for the pain to subside enough for him to open his eyes without fear of spilling all the water accumulated there. 

He looked up. The dark opening allowed the snow to fall gently inside the cave but blocked the gusts of wind, keeping the worst of the cold outside. He turned his head around, feeling not ice, water or snow, but earth under his body. It wasn't warm, but it was covered from the weather and certainly not as freezing as the outside had been. 

He sat up, his arm clutched against his chest. It throbbed angrily with piercing pain, the bruise getting bigger and the cut reddening with a thin line of blood. He squeezed his eyes and puffed, muscles tensing as he tried to ride through the blinding pain. 

Finally, when it had settled to a less agonizing level, he rose to his feet and stumbled ahead in the dark, good arm stretched out to feel his way around. He squinted and tried to identify the only source of light in the middle of so much darkness. 

He stepped forward, feeling rough edges of sharp rocks under his fingers as his hand trailed a path on the wall. It seemed like he had walked into a corridor, the dim lighting coming from the other end, flickering and yellow, dancing on the dark wall. 

He slowly stepped into a larger chamber, heart pounding and breath hitching, fully expecting to find a wild beast sleeping in its lair. He swallowed and froze when he saw a black mass huddled slumped against a wall near a small camp fire. 

Rodney carefully threaded ahead, watching out for any movement, but not finding any. He narrowed his eyes as he approached and recognized the man's clothes. 

He hurried ahead, dropping to his knees and shaking the sleeping form. 

"Oh, my God! Sheppard!" 

He turned Sheppard's head away from the wall and gasped when he saw a big gash on the side, covering half of his face with blood. 

"Sheppard! Wake up!" 

Rodney shook him again, heart hammering heavily in his chest for not getting so much as a moan in response. He swallowed and touched Sheppard's pale forehead, finding it cold. Rodney snatched his hand away and crashed to the ground, breathing fast. 

"Nononono." 

He leaned in closer, bending his head low to feel Sheppard's breathing and pressing a shaky hand to the pulse on his neck. Rodney stayed unmoving for the longest seconds of his life, melting in relief when he found both still present. 

"Don't you ever scare me like that! You hear me, Sheppard!" 

Rodney looked back at the small campfire and threw in some of the larger branches tossed around the place. He felt the heat of it on his face as it burned stronger, then went back to sit beside Sheppard. 

He leaned Sheppard's body closer to his for warmth. "What the hell happened to you?" 

Sheppard's clothes were caked with dirt, his parka, vest and P90 gone. He had patches of dried blood on his arms and drops all over his chest and shoulder near the head wound. 

Rodney removed his heavy coat and placed it on top of the both of them, then took the canteen and cleansed Sheppard's wound. The cut was long, going from left eye and into his hairline above his left ear. Rodney removed pieces of dirt and small rocks from it, all the while frowning and complaining. 

"How do you go from fine back in Atlantis to being stuck here on this frozen rock again?" Rodney puffed. "I thought you were supposed to wait until the blizzard passed. And where the hell is the jumper?" 

Rodney looked around the cave.

"Oh well, not that I can say much about it. I mean, have you looked at me?" Rodney turned his head to look at Sheppard. "Hmm, of course not, you're unconscious. It’s the only time you ever listen to me." 

Rodney shifted his weight. "As you can see, I had a bit of an accident. Stupid earthquake had to come right in the middle of the blizzard and stupid villagers had to take refuge inside a freaking cave! Can you believe it?" 

Rodney sighed. "We got trapped and all banged up in a place filled with crying women and children." Rodney stared at the hypnotizing flames. 

"Ronon and Teyla are all right by the way," he said softly. "They got stuck in a separate part of the cave. I was the only one in position to get out of there…" Rodney rubbed his face. 

"Can you believe it? They sent _me_ to get out and save everyone." 

He shook his head. "Now it seems like we're stuck here. I'm not going to go exploring. Have you seen this place? It's _dark_. Dark, damp, cold, not to mention I'm not leaving you here alone." 

He poked Sheppard in the chest. "Are you listening to me?" Rodney sighed and leaned his head back. "Only you would decide to hit your head in a moment like this. I sure hope you don't have a cracked skull or internal bleeding or anything like that." 

Soft moaning made Rodney snap his head around. 

"Sheppard?" 

When Rodney tapped Sheppard's face gently, his head rolled and lolled to the side. 

"Whhapp'd?"

"Oh, thank God!" Rodney breathed.

Sheppard's eyes opened to tiny slits. "R'dny?" 

"Yes, it's me. How're you feeling?" 

Sheppard's eyes drooped. "Tir'd."

"Nononono." Rodney tapped Sheppard's face. "Stay awake now." 

Sheppard's eyes stopped from fully closing and he shifted his head up slightly. "You 'kay?"

Rodney frowned. "Of course I'm not okay!" He shook Sheppard and sighed. "You hit your head, remember?" 

"Nrghh…"

"Sheppard?" Rodney shifted and held Sheppard head from falling on his shoulder. "C'mon, help me here. You're hurting my arm!" 

Rodney grunted and turned slightly, feeling Sheppard fall slowly to the side. Rodney held him up and hauled him back against his body. 

"God, Sheppard! Why don't you ever listen?" 

Rodney huffed as he heard the slow breathing of a sleeping person, and adjusted his grip to ease the pressure against his broken arm. 

\--------------

Rodney kicked some branches into the fire and watched as the flames spit embers that illuminated the cave. 

"I can't help but wonder how long it'll be until they miss us." Rodney watched the yellow glow as it danced on the walls. "Did you ever make it to Atlantis? Did you crash your jumper?" 

Rodney kicked the branches again. 

"If you did and if it's out there, then it's probably buried by snow and it'll never be seen by a search party." He paused. "What are the odds of us ending up at the same cave?" 

Rodney narrowed his eyes. "Unless… I'm not in a cave. Unless I'm still out there in the blizzard, freezing to death and hallucinating! Oh, God! I'll be dead in minutes!" 

Rodney turned his head slightly. "If that's the case, then this hallucination is lasting an awful long time." He puffed. "Of course you can't really tell when you're crazy. A minute can feel like hours." 

Silence hovered for a few seconds.

"Of all the hallucinations I could have, why this one? Why a cave with you inside, unconscious, concussed and bleeding?" He shifted. "Why not a tropical paradise, where it's warm and full of hot blondes?" He smiled. "Now _that_ would be a nice hallucination."

Rodney poked Sheppard on the shoulder. "You know, it's really boring having a one way conversation with you. It's a lot more fun when you talk back." 

"Then mayb-… you --d shutup… and let me sleep…" Sheppard said as he turned his head slightly.

"Oh, Sheppard! Finally!" Rodney leaned back to have a better look at Sheppard's face. "I hope you don't fall asleep and leave me talking to myself again." 

Sheppard's eyes were closed. "Hmmm…"

"Sheppard?" Rodney called while he shook his shoulder. "C'mon, at least try to open your eyes, you lazy bastard!" 

Rodney heard Sheppard's breathing even out again and sighed.

"Typical!" 

\---------------

"R'dny…"

Rodney's ears perked up. "Sheppard! Would you mind staying awake for more than a few seconds at a time?" 

"Head hurts…" Sheppard said, eyelids fighting to open, but losing the battle.

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Of course it hurts. You hit your head, remember?" 

"Hmm…" Sheppard's eyes stopped moving and stayed close.

Rodney shook Sheppard's shoulder. "C'mon. Just a little longer."

"R'dny?" His eyes finally opened slightly. 

"Yes, it's me."

"Wh't happ'd?" He turned his head and frowned. 

Rodney sighed. "I don't know what happened to you. All I know is that you've got a really hard head that is cracked open at the moment." 

His eyelids drooped. "Hurts…"

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'm sure it does. Do you remember how it happened?" He bumped his shoulder on Sheppard's.

Sheppard got still. "Tir'd." 

"And there you go… asleep again…" 

\--------------

Rodney tapped the button on his radio and called again. 

"This is Doctor Rodney McKay. Can anyone hear me?" 

Only static returned. Rodney sighed and dropped the radio in his lap. 

"Still nothing." Rodney rubbed his broken arm and grunted as he shifted from under Sheppard's weight. "It's been hours; they must be searching for us. The blizzard has to be gone by now." He looked down at the sleeping form. "Right?"

Sheppard didn't even stir. 

"Right." Rodney took his radio again. "This is Doctor Rodney McKay. Is anyone there?"

\-------------

Rodney yawned as he watched the flames slowly die off, and leaned his head back. "See? All this sleeping you've been doing is making _me_ sleepy, too." 

He straightened himself and pushed Sheppard from his arm, letting him rest on only his shoulder. 

"God! This is really uncomfortable, you know?" 

Rodney bit his lip and watched Sheppard sleep in the faint light still left from the fire. 

"You're such a sleepy head. Always sound asleep. How can you do that? It’s like you have a sleeping button." Rodney poked Sheppard's arm. "Asleep." He poked again. "Awake. How can you wake up in a heartbeat with the slightest noise, just a soft scuff of footsteps, then fall straight back to sleep if there is no danger around?" He shook his arm. 

"Sheppard? You’re worrying me with this head wound of yours." 

Rodney shook Sheppard further. "C'mon! I'm tired of this!" 

Sheppard finally moaned and cracked one eye open. 

"Hey! It worked!" Rodney grinned.

"R'dny?"

"Don't sleep again!" Rodney ordered, putting a finger up in front of Sheppard's face. 

The gesture was obviously ignored as Sheppard's eyelids dropped and he once more fell asleep. 

\------------

Rodney straightened and cracked his back. "This is really messing with my spine, you know." 

He kept a hold on Sheppard while he stretched the other way. 

"Ouch. That hurts, Sheppard!" he cried out when Sheppard's hand brushed Rodney's broken arm. 

Silence hovered.

"They must have forgotten about us." Rodney looked up at the dark ceiling. 

"Maybe we're so far from the gate that they'll never reach us."

"Maybe they'll only find my frozen body up in that blizzard…"

"Maybe they won't even come…" 

A slight hiss reached his ears and made Rodney fumble with the radio, picking it up before it fell from his hands. 

"---th---rne--- Anyone--- opy?"

"Yes, yes! This is McKay!" 

"Doctor McK--, this is Lorn--, we---- got --- position ----- are in route," the voice came over the open channel. 

Rodney laughed. "Thank God! Sheppard is injured!" 

"We----- Beckett with ---. ETA --- one min--." 

Rodney grinned and placed the radio down. "See, Sheppard, I knew they would come. I knew it!" 

\------------

Rodney scratched the skin around his cast, mumbling curses as he did it. 

"Would you stop doing that, Rodney?" Carson snapped at him. 

"It itches!" Rodney growled in frustration when the scratching didn't produce any relief. 

"Stop thinking about it then!" 

"Stop telling me what to do, Carson!" 

"I'm your doctor. I'm supposed to tell you what to do!" The Scottish accent came heavy. "Bloody hell, man! You're going to hurt yourself with all that scratching!" 

"Nghrrr… would you both just stop?" Sheppard said softly while his head turned on the pillow, eyes still closed. 

Carson grinned. "Colonel, how are you feeling?"

Rodney puffed. "If he says tired, I'm going to hit him!"

Sheppard smiled slightly. "Then I won't say anything." He opened his eyes. 

"Finally decided to grace us with your presence, hmm?" Rodney stepped towards the head of the bed. 

Sheppard looked at each of their faces, then his eyes fell down to Rodney's arm. "What happened?"

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Earthquake, blizzard, falling, cave, rescued." 

Sheppard narrowed his eyes. 

Carson smiled. "You had a bit of a struggle with your jumper. Do you remember?"

Sheppard bit his lower lip and shook his head. 

"Not unexpected. You have a bad gash on you head, lad."

Rodney raised a finger. "Yes, and I had to stand your constant mumbling while we were trapped inside that stupid cave for hours until Lorne arrived." 

"Ronon, Teyla?"

Carson placed a hand on Sheppard's shoulder. "They're fine. Rodney broke his arm in the earthquake then had to get to the gate in a blizzard and found you along the way." 

Rodney crossed his arms. "And you're welcome." 

Sheppard smiled slightly before his eyes started to close. Rodney rolled his eyes and smiled a little as he watched Sheppard fall asleep again.


End file.
